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Gizmo
"Has it got a name, dad?" "Yeah, Mogwai." "What?" "Mogwai; some Chinese word, I just call him Gizmo, he seems to like it." - Billy Peltzer and his father Randall Peltzer "Ahhhh! Bright light!" '' - Gizmo eyeing the sunlight through a window. Gizmo is one of the main characters in the "Gremlins" series, he is a cute and fluffy mogwai who is the pet of Billy Peltzer and he doesn't seem to have a single bit of meanness within him. He wants to stay as a mogwai and does not want to turn into a gremlin, as revealed when refusing to eat food after midnight. His origin is unknown, as the earliest known fact of Gizmo is that he lived in a small box in Mr. Wing's shop the whole time before Randall Peltzer bought him. Biography The First Batch Gizmo was the source of all the gremlins to appear in the films. He is a brown and white mogwai who likes to sing and watch television. Unlike the rest of his species, Gizmo is kind, friendly, and harmless. Gizmo was first seen in the original Gremlins film when Randal Peltzer 'purchased' it from Mr. Wing, by making a deal with the shopkeepers grandson, to give to his son, Billy, as a Christmas present. When Billy is showing Gizmo to his friend Pete Fountaine he accidentally spills water on Gizmo spawning the first batch. The first batch of mogwai are mean-spirited and deliberately manipulate Billy into feeding them after midnight. It is implied that the first batch was jealous of Gizmo for being Billy's favorite. After the mogwais were fed after midnight they turn into pupas and then hatch as Gremlins. Upon hatching, the band ganged up on the terrified Gizmo and hung to a dartboard while they threw darts at him until the leader Stripe threw him down the laundry chute. Four of the gremlins were wiped out in the Peltzer home. However Stripe managed to escape. After Gizmo was found by Billy, the two tracked down Stripe to the YMCA, where they were unable to stop him from getting into the pool and multiplying a thousand fold. When Billy failed to convince the sherieff about the gremlins that would attack the town, he and Gizmo got into his car which Billy succeeded in starting up. Arriving at Dorry's Tavern, they saved Billy's girlfriend Kate and hid from the gremlins in the bank. Eventually, they found the gremlins in the movie theater, where they (and Gizmo) were singing along to the 'Heigh-Ho' from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. While they were distracted, Billy, Kate, and Gizmo opened the gas main under the theater to cause it to explode, leaving only Stripe, who Billy went to stop from getting to more water. Gizmo, having escaped Kate (who was then holding him), discovers that the sun was coming out and realizes that Stripe could be killed by it. Using a toy car, Gizmo drove around the store in search of Billy and most of all, Stripe. Gizmo arrived at the greenhouse department just as Stripe was using the greenhouse fountain to recreate his army. Just as Stripe is about to shoot him, Gizmo opens the greenhouse blinds to let the sunlight in (being fortunate enough to fall into the bushes and not be exposed to the sunlight too) destroying the evil gremlin. At the end of the first film, he was taken back to New York City by Mr. Wing for safekeeping, but implies that one day he would give Gizmo back when they were "ready" to handle the responsibility of keeping him. The New Batch Near Mr. Wing's death, Clamp Enterprises were wanting to take Mr. Wing's store into service, even attempting to bribe him with a television. Despite being rejected, Clamp's associates left behind the television, which Gizmo (still interested in it) turned on and watched a Rambo movie. Six weeks later, Mr. Wing passed away, allowing Clamp Enterprises to take the land it was on. Inside, Gizmo, who had been freed by Mr. Wing before he died, was seen sad and moaning over his death before construction works of Clamp Inc began tearing it down. Gizmo ran out of the store, only to captured by Lewis, a lab assistant to Dr. Catheter. Dr. Catheter and his assistances studied Gizmo, particularly his love of music. Fats Domino - Im Ready is his favorite. During his time in the lab, his song was heard by employees and it found its way around the buliding, which was lucky for Gizmo as Billy, who worked in the Clamp Enterprises, heard a mailman singing it while he was making a delivery, causing Billy to realize Gizmo was there and snuck him out of the lab. When Billy leaves Gizmo for a 'business meeting', he tells Gizmo to wait in a desk drawer until Kate comes by to pick him up. However, Gizmo curiosly comes out and decides to explore Billy's office. Unfortunately, the janitor comes around at this time to work on the water fountain which unfortunately sprays too far. Gizmo, knowing what would happen, attempts to keep away from the stream of water by hiding under Billy's desk. However, another stray blast from the fountain hits the top of Billy's desk and slides down the front and to the side, directly over Gizmo and drips on him, leaving the poor little Mogwai powerless to prevent himself from spawning a new batch of evil mogwais, Mohawk, George, Lenny and Daffy. The former three ganged up on Gizmo and trapped him in the ventilation shaft before going to look for something to eat after midnight while Daffy was mistaken for Gizmo by Kate who took him with her. Gizmo wandered around the shaft for hours before finding himself falling out into the basement where the gremlins had just hatched from their cocoons. Before Gizmo knew it, he was attacked by Mohawk, the reincarnation of Stripe who desired revenge for Gizmo destroying him in the first film. The insidious monster tortured the little mogwai in various scenes: first shocking him with electrical cords, then shoving his head into a photocopier, followed by ripping bits of his fur off with velcro tape, and finally tying him to a toy track and running him over with a toy train, where Mohawk left him. Recalling the Rambo movie he had seen, Gizmo decided to fight back. After attempting an exercise regimen with bar bells and a small puncing bag, Gizmo fashioned a makeshift bow out of a paperclip and rubberband while making an arrow out of a pencil and whiteout bottle. Just as the new spider-hybrid Mohawk was about to kill Kate and Marla Bloodstone, Rambo Gizmo bust out of the air vent, wearing a red headband. Lighting his arrow, Gizmo fired it at Mohawk, setting him on fire and killing him. Afterwards, he was kept in a box so he wouldn't be harmed while the other gremlins were destroyed. Thereafter, Billy's boss suggested modeling a new line of merchandise after Gizmo, though suggested he would look better without the bandana, which Gizmo refused to lose. He was last seen going to live with Billy and Kate and asking if they had cable. Trivia Despite not being wicked and vicious like the gremlins, Gizmo has shown he's just as adapt as they are with weapons and electrical devices, such as being able to know how to work an electrical keyboard, turning on a television, operating a toy car, playing a trumpet, and making an effective bow and arrow out of office supplies. This might be a reference to his name, as the word "gizmo" means a gadget. Gizmo has shown a love for television which he developed while in the Peltzer's care in the first movie. While Mr. Wing found the idea of the mogwai watching tv ridiculous, it has proven useful for Gizmo as in the first film, he watched a movie involving a race and became interested in cars, or as he called them 'Vroom-Vroom'. In the climax, Gizmo drove a toy car through the department store to reach the greenhouse department before Stripe's new army was born. In the second movie, television proves its use for Gizmo again as he recalled what the hero of the Rambo movie did and mimiced those tactics with amazing results. Gizmo was responsible for the destruction of the leaders of both batches (interestingly, Stripe met his demise following the destruction of his army, whereas Mohawk was destroyed before). It should be noted that Gizmo took a much more direct approach in Mohawk's destruction than Stripe's, as he shot Mohawk with a flaming arrow in the second movie, whereas he indirectly destroyed Stripe by exposing him to sunlight in the original. Gizmo had become much more assertive than he was in the first movie because, as Billy says, "they pushed him too far". According to the novelization of the first film, mogwai are the result of genetic manipulations by an alien scientist to create a creature that would evoke good-naturedness and goodwill amongst the galaxy. However a slight miscalculation caused all but 1 in 10,00 to be mischievous and/or evil and the transformation mogwai can go through being totally unintended. Only one in ten thousand are gentle, and as a result is hated by his brethren. Also, this previously mentioned mogwai is effectively immortal. As Gizmo is gentle, and has a long list of historical figures that have owned him, it is clear that he is this mogwai type. If this mogwai eats after midnight though, he will lose his longevity, becoming a typical gremlin. However, as this is never mentioned in the movie, the credence to this nature of the mogwai/Gizmo is unknown. Behind the scenes * In both films, Gizmo was voiced by actor Howie Mandel. * He was never shown to have eaten anything in both movies. However, a commercial that advertised Gremlins Cereal shown Gizmo eating Gremlins' Cereal. * In the second film, Mohawk was pushing Gizmo on a copying printer. The flashing light on the copying printer would have affected Gizmo greatly, because his eyes were wide open and the light flashed many, many times. * Gizmo might not have known it was after midnight in the first film when Billy fed the Mogwais some chicken legs. Gizmo didn't want one, possibly two other reasons: he doesn't like to eat meat or he wasn't hungry. * Gizmo has musical talent since he can play a trumpet (that was actually perfect in size for him) and knew how to play the electronic keyboard. * Gizmo is the only known mogwai to not have a speck of hatred or evil in him, unlike his fellow mogwai who are often cruel, mean, abusive, and vicious, although he did have a bit of envy when Billy took care of the other mogwai and seemed to not care about him anymore in ''Gremlins. * The Gizmo puppet used in the first film was not used in the second film, however the much cuter Gizmo puppet used in Gremlins 2: The New Batch was featured on the DVD cover of Gremlins. Video Games Gizmo has been a playable character in many video games based on the Gremlins movies. He is the sole playable character in the Gremlins 2 game for the NES and Game Boy. In Gremlins: Unleashed for the Game Boy Color and Gremlins: Stripe vs. Gizmo for the Game Boy Advance, Gizmo is one of two playable characters, the other being Stripe. He is the final boss if the player chosses to play as Stripe. If the player decides to play as Gizmo, Stripe will be the final boss. UltimateMogwai Fact File ﻿ More Pictures Category:Gremlins and Mogwai Category:Protagonists Category:Mogwai Category:Gremlins